Kolkata: The heart of Kolkata was drowned in a deluge of saffron on Tuesday as thousands of BJP workers took part in party President Amit Shah’s roadshow. Flower petals rained from rooftops on both sides of the street while thousands took part in the colourful procession, chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and waving saffron flags.
Shah stood atop a truck, flanked by Kolkata North candidate Rahul Sinha, South Kolkata candidate Chandra Kumar Bose, Union Minister Babul Supriyo and Assam Finance Minister Himanta Viswa Sharma. Visibly pleased at the response, Shah waved at the people and greeted them with folded hands.
Over 100 small and medium pickup trucks, decorated with green and saffron balloons, party banners and cut-outs of Modi-Shah and carrying enthusiastic activists, were the vanguard of the rally followed by over 500 male and female dhakis (drummers), dressed in saffron from different parts of Bengal. The roadshow swelled in size every passing moment, as more and more people joined in and thousands more watched the spectacle from balconies, shops, roadside buildings, and pavements.
People wearing Modi masks and unique lotus hats grooved to the tunes of high octane songs played from loudspeakers. Half-an-hour into the programme, large stretches of the city hub came to a standstill with hundreds participating in the procession, the like of which the city has rarely seen.
Innumerable saffron balloons were released, and the streets on the route were bedecked with petals which included 10 thousand kilos of marigold flowers bought from Bagnan in Howrah district. BJP leaders and activists looked upbeat. “If the polls are conducted in a free and fair manner, then we will comfortably win in many seats across Bengal. But the Central force have to play a pivotal role in maintaining peace during polling.
In north Kolkata, a large section of people are in favour of BJP. We need to stop Trinamool from rigging the votes,” said Vikram Singh, secretary of BJP’s north Kolkata unit. Carrying their traditional triangular red flags and playing ‘tasha’ beats, a large number of men and women from the Dalit Matua community followed Shah’s vehicle. “We are here because we support BJP and Modi ji.
He has said, once voted back to power, his government will ensure that all the Hindu refugees in India would get citizenship. We have been struggling for a long time for our rights but the current Trinamool Congress government does not pay any heed to our demands,” said Gauranga Das.
